Posted on 01/22/2018 6:24:58 PM PST by markomalley
The Trump administration is waiving more than 30 environmental rules to accelerate the construction of President Trump's proposed border wall in New Mexico, forcing environmental groups to consider another round of lawsuits.
The Department of Homeland Security published a notice Monday that said the waiver was necessary to ensure the "expeditious construction of barriers" near the Santa Teresa Land Port of Entry.
"The Secretary of Homeland Security has determined, pursuant to law, that it is necessary to waive certain laws, regulations and other legal requirements in order to ensure the expeditious construction of barriers and roads in the vicinity of the international land border of the United States," according to a notice published in the Federal Register.
The waiver included rules and requirements under several top federal environmental rules, including the National Environmental Policy Act, the Endangered Species Act, the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, the National Historic Preservation Act, the Clean Air Act, the Archaeological Resources Protection Act, the Safe Drinking Water Act, and the Noise Control Act.
The waiver would allow the administration to begin replacing vehicle barriers with bollard walls along a 20-mile stretch of the U.S.-Mexico border west of El Paso, Texas, at the New Mexico land border port.
"The United States Border Patrol’s El Paso Sector is an area of high illegal entry," according to the Department of Homeland Security's notice, stating the need for the waiver. "The El Paso Sector therefore remains an area of high illegal entry for which there is an immediate need to construct border barriers and roads."
The Center for Biological Diversity, the first group to sue the Trump administration over the wall last year, said Monday that it is considering a new lawsuit to address this latest waiver.
“The Trump administration is stopping at nothing to ram through this destructive border wall,” said Brian Segee, a senior attorney for the group. “Trump’s divisive border wall is a humanitarian and environmental disaster, and it won’t do anything to stop illegal drug or human smuggling.”
The environmental group sued the administration last year for a previous waiver of conservation rules to build a portion on the wall near San Diego. A hearing on the case in the federal district court of San Diego occurs next month on Feb. 9. The group argued that the wall violates the endangered species law by cutting off species' migratory patterns and ignoring protected habitat.
"Beyond jeopardizing wildlife, endangered species and public lands, the U.S.-Mexico border wall is part of a larger strategy of ongoing border militarization that damages human rights, civil liberties, native lands, local businesses and international relations," the group said.
The wall is happening, people!
The Department of Homeland Security handles environment issues?
The wall is finished. McConnell caved on DACA. It is over.
“McConnell caved on DACA”
—
How so? It hasn’t even come up yet for any kind of debate or voting.
How many days are going to pass before a Judge rules they cannot waive the rules?
I can never understand why there is so much damn persistent towards amnesty with these politicians! This is why these Republican politicians are hated. There is zero demand for amnesty from the Republicans and I’ll bet it’s in 100th place amongst liberals as well. Why?
I am all for this.
But Trump it has been a full year now.
Get started on the wall, and get started on bringing American businesses back to America once again.
For real.
Think they were granted that authority in the Authorizing legislation years ago.
Thanks markomalley.
Well IMO it is the cheap labor for big donors. It is sickening. I want employers to go to prison if they do not certify citizenship on E verify. PRISON!!
What does this tell you?
A) That building a wall is an automatic environmental disaster?
Or
B) That environmental rules are a crock?
Just think - somehow the colonies and the nation made it all the way from 1620 to 1970 without the EPA- 350 years.
Now, 48 years later, you can’t drain the water from your own crop fields without violating their myriad rules.
Why is it that the more Trump wins an increasing number of shrill Freepers insist ‘it’s over’?
I suspect the NeverTrumpers have staged an invasion.
Ok fair question if you are behind. Catch up. McConnell traded the reopening of the government for a separate Daca vote. Daca is all we had to force negotiation to get our Wall , end to chain, lottery and merit based legal immigration. By removing that and giving them a clean DACA vote — WE LOST EVERYTHING!! All of it absolutely gone!~! Are you caught up now?
I like this Kirsten Nielsen! She’s going to do to DHS what Scott Pruitt is doing to the EPA, and she’s just getting started.
Hot damn!!
What did you think the bidding process, the full scale model process, and the testing with our special forces groups, was for? That’s part of building the wall.
Apple just announced it is bringing back $250 billion dollars to the United States, and will spend upwards of $500 billion for a new plant in the United States, to employ upwards of 20,000 people.
Many other companies have announced new plans to open plants in the U. S. Where have you been?
within 24 months we could easily have between $500 billion to $1 trillion new tax revenue from repatriated money.
The people these businesses employ in the U. S. will also be paying taxes.
Why are you still carping? I’ve never seen anything even close to this in my 66 years on the planet.
You just don’t see it do you? I guess it is hopeless for some. I am here to help the many. Good luck as you watch DACA get passed down your throat now with no WALL!! Just suck it up buttercup.
The right of way along the border has already been established. The feds have had control over what they can put up. Border control and protection is the responsibility of the federal government. The states agreed to it. If the border states don’t want a border wall, the we don’t want those states in our union.
Simple as that.
Take your chances with mexico.
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